Chief Warrant Officer Four Ralph L. Thompson was born on 2 September 1944 in Sacramento, California. He served in Vietnam and as an Instructor Pilot in the Cargo Branch until he went to Korea. An experienced aviator, he had been instructing at the Chinook transition course at Fort Rucker, Alabama, when he volunteered for Task Force 160. He was known as a very competent and experienced Chinook Pilot and made Aircraft Commander and Instructor Pilot very quickly. He was a quiet, no-nonsense type of guy who kept to himself most of the time.

CW4 Thompson was a member of Alpha Company, 159th Aviation Battalion and was conducting over water training operations when his CH-47 Chinook, #527, crashed in the Atlantic Ocean just east of Cape Henry, Virginia, on 20 March 1983.

CW4 Thompson is survived by his wife, Rosa; and his daughters, Lisa, Christina and Ann. He is laid to rest in Folsom, California, at Lakeside Memorial Lawn Cemetery.